Soap teens have a lot of things working against them. They're often played by green actors thrust into story that become marginalized because frankly, it's hard to guess what most teens are thinking in real life, never mind in soapland. But GL's newest generation avoids all the clichés, not only because they're personable, attractive, capable actors - Scott Bailey (Sandy), Mandy Bruno (Marina), John Driscoll (Coop), Stephanie Gatschet (Tammy), Crystal Hunt (Lizzie) and Tom Pelphrey (Jonathan) - but because the characters have the same nuances as real people who just happen to be young.

That's not to say that they don't act their age: They're realistic, funny, charming without being annoyingly precocious and hung-up on problems that life experience will solve. They each have their own identity, yet none of them are stereotypes. (We've all known a creepy, lost boy like Jonathan and a rich, insecure brat like Lizzie.) Ah, kids today. To think GL actually figured 'em out.